A Two-Card Post

As COMC's prices started getting out of whack a bit, I started frequenting eBay a little bit again for cards. Mainly, I have focused on getting some cards that just don't appear on COMC -- or at least I don't see them there.

Plus, there is also a little bit of the immediacy thing. Because eBay is so vast in its listings, it is seemingly much easier to find a card that scratches the particular itch I might have at a particular time. It's that whole "give it to me now" thing that we have turned into as a culture, I suppose. 

Anyway, enough of the lede. Let's start with a little mood music.

Back ten years ago, I decided to go on a vacation by myself. I hadn't met my wife at that point -- wouldn't for another three years -- so I said, "enough waiting around...it's time to live life and see the world that I want to see." Because I had gotten totally sucked into the Premier League at that point, I said, "London it is." Now, I should have gone to Manchester to support "my" team, Manchester United, but instead I went to London and saw three games there instead.

Plastered all over the Tube Station walls were ads for this album called "Inside In" by The Kooks. Intrigued, I bought the album and really liked it -- and, in fact, recognized this song as one I'd heard before.

Still, it's always fun to be introduced to something -- someplace -- entirely different and new. 

I think that extends to new players in the minor league system as well. The Brewers' draft in 2015 was widely praised as one in which the Brewers got a significant infusion of high-end talent into the system. One of the potential steals in the draft came when, at pick 55, the Brewers selected Division II standout Cody Ponce from the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos. You can't tell it from this photo, but Ponce has looked a little more like Kenny Powers in the past.

Anyway, Ponce is 6'5" tall and weighs 235 pounds. He fell to pick 55 because of a sore shoulder during his junior year in college, but the guy has serious stuff: a legit fastball that can hit 98 MPH and, apparently, it now has real cut action on it...as Ponce shows here against Yasiel Puig (through a fence):

Cody Ponce vs. Yaisel Puig. 98 with slight cut actionhttps://t.co/V7FHKNCIIe

— Chris Kusiolek (@CaliKusiolek) September 30, 2015

I have been hearing tons of great things about Ponce coming out last year (after 46 innings in the Midwest League with 36 Ks and four walks and a 55.1% ground ball rate, I'm not sure how bad things might be said) and again this spring. After reading this scouting report on the Brewers SB Nation site Brew Crew Ball, I decided I needed a Cody Ponce autograph. 

I got the one here for $5 -- and I know I probably overpaid, but come on, it says "Go Brewers!" After seeing all the cool cards with inscriptions like this that Matt at Bob Walk the Plank has gotten, I was sold.

The second of the two cards here isn't nearly as cool or have as much of a story -- other than featuring a manu-relic of a logo that still says, "1970s Brewers" to me.

It's another Braun for the Braun collection with a cool commemorative patch that was maybe $2 or something like that. 

And because I can't end on such a seemingly boring/uninspired note, how about one more song?

Inspired by 1970, it's the #52 song of that year, but it might be the best one all year in my book.

Thanks to a huge mailday on Monday, I have a ton of trade packages to catch up on, so look for me again tomorrow.